Tickling as a pastime and even a fetish, sure. But as a sport? David Farrier, a New Zealand journalist with a lust for the weird and bizarre, knew he had a story when he happened upon an online video for competitive endurance tickling, in which hunky young men were tied to a bed with their clothes on and tickled — and paid for it by a company called Jane O’Brien Media.

But wholesome frolicking this was not. The delectably warped “Tickled,” which debuts Monday, Feb. 27, on HBO and its streaming platforms, follows Mr. Farrier and his co-director, Dylan Reeve, down the rabbit hole as they pursue the enigmatic Jane and are besieged by homophobic rants, private investigators and legal threats. Far more disturbing are the mysterious online bullies intent on ruining the lives of participants who dare to unshackle themselves from Jane’s vast tickling empire. “The Tickle King,” a 20-minute follow-up to stream online following the premiere of “Tickled,” tries to get to the bottom of the not-so-funny business.

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page AR4 of the New York edition with the headline: Television; Wanted: Hunks. Must Like Tickling.. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe